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Good product but very strong smell

I'm a product tester with BzzAgent UK so I got to try this product for free, here's what I thought of it.

This gel is easy to use and is applied pretty much like all others. The gel needs to be applied around and under the bowl rim, left for around 2 hours and then flushed. This was easy enough as the bottle has a nozzle to make reaching those areas simple.

I applied the gel and stood back. It had a rather bright but not unpleasant lime colour and coated everything evenly. After roughly 2 hours I flushed the toilet and did notice a difference. The bowl looked bright and clean and I found the results easily comparable to my regular cleaning product.

However this gel did suffer in one area. The smell is pretty overpowering! An effort has clearly been made to give it a crisp, citrusy scent. Unfortunately the underlying chemical/bleach odour is very strong and covering it with an equally strong citrus smell does not a happy marriage make!

It was easily detectable two rooms away and VERY intense in the bathroom. I don't know whether this would bother everyone or effect them in the same way as I am sensitive to strong smells. So. whilst impressed with the cleaning power of the product, the smell means I'll probably be sticking with my regular gel cleaner.

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Another little thing we can do to be greener, while still having a clean home.

I recently signed up to become a Bzz agent, which is an online community which gives out product samples and then gets people to use social media such as facebook and twitter to share their thoughts and experiences with the product that they have been sent to test.

I was asked to try this new range on sale in Tesco. It is called naturally powered, and it is an eco-friendly option for cleaning products to use around the home. There are not really that many eco-friendly options on the market, so I was interested to give this one a try. I do like to be more eco-friendly, but toilet cleaning is one area I struggle on as when I tried Ecover, the other leading market brand, I was not that won over.

The bottle looks a little different to others. A lot of brands nowadays have the angled necks on them that make it a lot easier to squirt the cleaner under the rim on the toilet. This one opts for a straight neck. However, because it is on one side of the bottle, it does still easily pour out of the bottle in a direct manner so you can get it to reach where you want quite easily. The bottle otherwise is grey (so totally different to the dark blues, blacks and yellows of other brands) with quite a simple looking label. I can't say honestly it is the first bottle that would grab my attention on the shelf, but looks are not everything. This bottle is made from recycled material, and is also 100% recyclable, which is handy if you live in an area that does recycle plastic. Rotherham is a bit behind the times in this respect, so I can't do this.

The first impression from using this cleaner was that it was a similar consistency and appearance to bleach. The liquid seemed quite thin, but it was viscous enough to cling to the edge of the bowl above the water line so I knew it was there and doing its job.

The smell was something that impressed me most. A lovely lemony smell, that was not too artificial and I didn't get the feeling I needed to put this down the toilet then run before I choked on the fumes. The smell was there the whole time the cleaner was in the toilet, and for a short while after, but it didn't linger like bleach smell does.

The cleaner contains perfume, disinfectants, and citric acid amongst the list of ingredients. The naturally powered range is said to be derived from 'essential oils like citrus, eucalyptus, pine and orange; and ingredients derived from plants such as corn, wheat, coconut, palm kernel and even potatoes.' This certainly smells a lot less chemical than other brands I have used.

But did it work?

Well, I have to say it is all relative. The problem with the cleaner is you are supposed to leave it down the toilet for about 2 hours before cleaning it away. In our house, most of the time, there is not a 2 hour slot unless overnight where the toilet is not in use. We also live in a hardwater area so limescale can build up and need treating. Although I try, with 2 small boys, my toilet is not always that inviting.

This cleaner was left to soak for the recommended time one morning when the boys were at school. I found the results mixed to be honest. The toilet looked shiny, and clean. There was no sign of dirt in the toilet, but I found that the limescale had not all gone as was promised by this cleaner. I generally use Harpic Power Plus tablets and liquid cleaner, so I am used to all limescale going within about 30 minutes. Here, some had gone, but there were still several patches.

Now, I don't know if this cleaner would then break down the remaining limescale the next use, but for me, it was just not effective enough at doing the whole job. It might work better if you were using this every day or two on a clean toilet with no limescale, and acting in a preventative manner.

Would I buy it?

I think I would, but I would not use this on its own in my toilet. I would be happy to replace my use of bleach with this cleaner, but I would probably still need to buy something to tackle the persistent limescale. I am happy with the price of £1.50 for 750ml, as it is cheaper than the other eco-friendly option, Ecover on sale at £1.69. However, if my budget was tight one week, I would skip this in favour of bleach and not follow my principles.

Overall, it is a fairly effective cleaner, and it is just one little way I can contribute to the world being a bit greener.

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Naturally Powered All in One Citrus Toilet Gel

I recently took part in a survey and was sent a bottle of Naturally Powered All in One Citrus Toilet Gel to test. Previous to taking part in the Buzz Agent campaign, I had not heard of the 'Naturally Powered' brand of cleaning materials before, so was intrigued to find out why it has been branded a 'natural' product.

Naturally Powered is a new range of environmentally conscious cleaning and laundry products which are exclusively available at Tesco. The range has been developed by eco experts, tested in the lab and approved at home. It has been branded as an alternative way to spring clean your home that looks after the environment, but doesn't compromise on performance.

Naturally Powered products differ from other branded products and give it that 'eco' name because they contain essential oils and ingredients derived from plants such as corn, wheat, coconut, palm kernel, potatoes etc. Naturally Powered supports the production of certified sustainable palm oil and the products contain small amounts of several ingredients which give a better cleaning performance, rather than using a lot of one single ingredient.

Naturally Powered All in One Citrus Toilet Gel costs £1.50 for a 750ml bottle. All bottles are 100% recycled and can be recycled again. As expected, the Citrus Toilet Gel in yellow in colour and claims to kill 99.9% of bacteria. To see the cleaning benefits of the toilet gel you need to squirt it around the toilet rim and leave for at least 2 hours before flushing the toilet. For better results, I prefer to leave it overnight.

I have to say it cleans very well and a little definitely goes a long way with this product. The bottle can be squeezed at the sides and it has a straight nozzle, so not curved to go deep under the toilet rim. When using toilet gel, I usually squirt all the way around the toilet rim, sometimes going around twice, but with Naturally Powered All in One Citrus Toilet Gel, once is enough. The toilet gel has the same consistency as bleach (but not of thin bleach), cleans well and removes lime scale. I don't feel the need to scrub the toilet when I use the Citrus Toilet Gel and it does seem to brighten up the toilet bowl after use.

As Naturally Powered products contain essential oils, this one being Citrus, the smell is very pleasant. It's not like the usual harsh lemon fragrance that is often associated with cleaning products; it has a fresh and gentle smell, that doesn't appear too chemical.

The only disadvantage for me would be the price. For an environmentally friendly product, it is reasonably priced at £1.50 a bottle; however I am so used to using bleach in the toilet (which only costs 67p a bottle) that I think I would only use this if it was on offer. Besides, I love the smell of bleach as it smells very 'clean' to me.

Overall, I give Naturally Powered All in One Citrus Toilet Gel 4 stars. The toilet gel is environmentally friendly, contains ingredients derived from plants, is very good at cleaning, has a pleasant citrus fragrance and removes lime scale. It is reasonably priced at £1.50 a 750ml bottle, however it won't be hard to find cheaper alternatives on the shelf, so this is why it loses a star from me.

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Cleans and freshens in an eco friendly way!

~ Naturally Powered All In One Citrus Toilet Gel ~

Naturally Powered is a new range of cleaning items that have been brought out by Tesco's. They are already available in store and online.

The Naturally Powered All in One Citrus Toilet Gel is something of the range that I have tried out, I don't usually opt for eco friendly as I buy pretty much the same brands of cleaning products all the time but as I am a Bzz Agent I qualified for a consumer trial for products from the Naturally Powered range and this is the item I was sent along with 2 sachets of Naturally Powered washing up liquid.

~ Packaging ~

First off I feel I have to mention that the bottle is made from 100% recycled materials and that it can indeed by recycled again so this is a thumbs up for Tesco!The bottle is mainly silver/grey in colour and is plastic, on the front is a small white coloured label that indicates the name, brand etc of the product, again there is a small white label on the back that tells me all the relevent information. The bottle isn't fancy or special in anyway, it infact looks rather plain and isn't as eye-catching as other brands, it does however look eco friendly or it looks as I would expect an eco friendly product to look.

It has a green lid that needs to be squeezed slightly in order to open it, it doesn't require to much pressure though so can be opened quite easily.

Under the cap is a small directional nozzle to make it easier to aim the product down the loo, the top is very straight though, not angled in anyway and I feel this makes it a little more difficult to squirt the product under the rim of the toilet, that may just be me though!

~ The Product and My Thoughts ~

The liquid gel inside the bottle is yellow in colour and this is only apparent after you have squirted some down the toilet as the bottle is not transparent, the colour is very bright and the scent is brilliantly citrusy, more so lemony I would say.

As I have said I am a Bzz Agent so this came to me packaged in a cardboard box and as a Bzz Agent I am required to evalute products aswell as add photo's, I photographed the gel in the toilet (yes, I did feel a bit silly, taking photo's of my toilet!!) and the photos show just how bright the yellow of the gel is. I would describe it as more of a liquid than a gel though as it doesn't cling to the toilet bowl as a thicker substance would, when placed around the rim it runs down the bowl but some of the liquid does stay on the bowl in order for it to do it's work.

It is recommended that you leave the product for 2 hours for it to do it's stuff then flush before using. I have used it in this way and found that it worked brilliantly but mostly I just pour a little in a give the toilet a scrub with the toilet brush or I leave it overnight. As soon as it is squirted down the toilet you can smell the fresh lemony scent and I find that the scent fills the bathroom and leaves the whole room clean and fresh smelling.

I admit that I was a bit skeptical about using this for the toilet as I do prefer to to use bleach or 'normal' toilet cleaners but I was plesantly surprised to see that it the job just aswell and made me feel a little bit better as the amount of bleach that goes down my toilet is redicilous!

Naturally Powered has a web address ~

www.naturally-powered.com

The blurb on the website describes this product as a citrus toilet gel that will leave your toilet sparkling, it is made from plant-derived cleaning ingredients and kills 99.9% of bacteria and viruses, while the all in one action cleans, disinfects and helps remove limescale too.

So in all it seems like a really good product, brilliant for the more eco friendly amongst us. It costs £1.50.